THE company for driver risk management

ADVICE & GUIDANCE

The Department for Transport has launched a new online resource for those responsible for staff who drive for work purposes. The site is divided into three areas: ‘The Business Case’, ‘How to manage driving for work’ and ‘Why manage driving for work?’. The website address is:

http://www.dft.gov.uk/drivingforwork/

If you click on ‘Useful Resources’ in the top menu and go to ‘Useful Links’ you will find the Fleet Safety Association listed, this being the recommended source of providers that offer a solution to the problem.

To compliment this, the DfT’s ‘Think!’ campaign has embarked on a communications programme focussed on ‘at work’ drivers too, to co-incide with new enforcement measures as a result of the introduction of the Road Safety Act 2006. There are new posters available and fresh advice on the website (http://www.thinkroadsafety.gov.uk/campaigns/drivingforwork/index.htm), as well as a series of ‘drivetime’ radio advertisements on regional radio, emphasising the dangers of ignoring the more rigorous mobile phone laws that have recently been introduced.

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FUEL ECONOMY COURSES

Although the government-funded SAFED training scheme has now come to an end, Drive & Survive can still deliver this van course for those of you that want to benefit from the significant improvement in fuel economy that we reported in the March newsletter (ref 07.03, available on the website under News/Newsletter Archive).

The course costs £160 per head and can be delivered on a one to one /half day or two to one /full day basis. For further information please call Judith Burt on 01295 724287 or email to enquiries@drivesurvive.co.uk

Incidentally for those of you keen to reduce your carbon footprint and improve your corporate social responsibility, there is some useful information and guidance on the Energy Saving Trust website www.energysavingtrust.org.uk

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GREEN MACHINES

Continuing on the green theme, a new website has just been launched dedicated to greener motoring. www.cleangreencars.co.uk not only provides information about choosing vehicles with the lowest environmental impact but also how to use conventional cars in a more environmentally considerate way. If you cross-reference the cars in the various categories with those listed as being safe in an impact (www.euroncap.com) you will have the best of both worlds.

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PAIN IN THE NECK

The latest findings from the respected Insurance Industry Research Centre at Thatcham suggest that more than 125,000 drivers and passengers are being injured annually simply because their head restraints are incorrectly adjusted. The resulting personal accident claims to insurance companies are costing hundreds of thousands of pounds and are a major cause of increasing insurance premiums.

The problem is so easy to resolve and takes only moments. For guidance on how to adjust your head restraint please go to www.drivesurvive.co.uk and click on the ‘Information’ menu tab. If you haven’t already registered you will need to do so but it only takes moments. Once logged in, click on ‘Downloads’ and go to the ninth item on the list, ‘Head Restraint Guide’.

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MESSAGE GETTING THROUGH AT LAST?

Since the new mobile phone usage regulations came into force a few weeks ago 6,891 drivers have been fined £60 and had three points added to their licence for non-compliance. Six motorists have been fined for using their mobile whilst teaching a learner driver and 17 for not being in proper control of their vehicle, despite using a legal hands free kit.

But mobile phone transgressors are not the only ones in the firing line. The new regulations have enabled the police to be far more vigorous in identifying other potentially distracting activities. 29-year-old salesman Keith Pemberton was one of several drivers recently to be hauled up for eating whilst driving. He got a £60 fine and three points for eating a cheese sandwich whilst on the move, as did a Securitas driver who was caught eating a packet of crisps whilst steering with his knees.

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POINTS MEAN.......SURPRISES

4.5 million UK drivers have points on their licences for speeding. 21 per cent of these are only one conviction away from a driving ban.

Can you be sure that there aren’t drivers like this in your fleet? You may not think it’s your problem but in fact losing an employee because he cannot carry out his duties is very disruptive to a business. Then there are those that continue to drive despite being banned – as an employer you may be considered complicit if you did not check the employee’s eligibility to drive on your behalf.

Drive & Survive can give you peace of mind by providing licence checks at varying frequencies depending upon the risk rating of individual drivers. For more information please contact Judith Burt on 01295 724287 or via email at enquiries@drivesurvive.co.uk

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TYRED OUT

We make no apologies for returning to the topic of tyres once more, as they are crucial vehicle safety items.

Leading tyre retailer Kwik Fit has revealed that 23% of motorists (that’s 4.9 million!) have knowingly driven on tyres with below the legal tread depth of 1.6 mm.  Sadly company car drivers, particularly those on cash for car schemes, are little better than the general public and put off replacing them until the last possible moment.

It really is important that the tyres on all vehicles driven for work purposes are inspected regularly, not just for tread depth but also impact damage too. Kwik Fit (like Drive & Survive, a Fleet News Award winner) is one of several tyre retailers that provide mobile facilities for fleets and they can be contacted on 01727 840206.

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SAVNAV POSITIVES

Dutch research has come out in favour of satellite navigation devices as a method of improving driver safety. The key findings of the study said that these devices

We reckon the jury is still out though on the negative effects of being incorrectly located in the first place, given inaccurate information and the potential distraction if adjustments are required once a journey has started.

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RED FOR DANGER

Thick red lines are being introduced in London in any location “where there are lots of cars, taxis and buses competing for space” according to a spokesperson for Transport for London. These lines indicate no stopping under any circumstances.  Ignore them at your peril. The fine for flouting the regulation is £100, instant vehicle tow away and a £150 release fee. 

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USEFUL WEBSITES

A couple of new websites have come to my attention over the past few weeks that might be useful to readers: www.safermotoring.co.uk and www.safermotorways.co.uk  Both are sources of interesting driver safety information.

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SAFETY TECHNOLOGY

The use of Ultra High Strength Steel and Boron Steel in vehicle construction over recent years has led to a dramatic improvement in crash worthiness. There is increasing evidence however that the UK bodyshop industry is failing to use the correct welding equipment when repairing these materials and there is serious chance of structural failure in a subsequent crash.

The situation is now sufficiently serious for a Metropolitan Police chief to order an enquiry, so one can expect traffic officers to be especially interested in this topic at the scene of serious crashes from now on.

We would suggest that fleet managers seek an undertaking from their appointed bodyshops that they are capable of making repairs in full accordance with manufacturers’ requirements. Not doing so may be construed as lack of duty of care if an employee was injured as a result of this neglect.

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WORDS OF WISDOM FROM OUR TRAINING MANAGER

YOUR RIGHT OF WAY - THERE’S NO SUCH THING!

You’re driving your car to work when you come to major crossroads controlled by traffic lights, and, as you approach, the lights turn red. You dutifully stop and await the green light.

As it turns green, you release the brakes and are about to move off when, speeding across the junction from your right, is a car travelling at least twice the speed limit and obviously breaking the law by jumping the red light. To make matters worse, the car misses yours by only a few inches, making you very aware that you’ve come within a spilt second of serious injury, perhaps even death.

In such situations most people respond in one or several of the following ways:

But, before considering the appropriate response, let’s look at what really happened.

You were driving along in your car as normal, approached a crossroads controlled by traffic lights. Seeing the lights at red, based on your experience and training, you decide to stop.

A few seconds later, another driver approached you from your right at an approximate 90% angle to you. Seeing his red light, for some reason he decides to continue past it. His car did not touch yours and disappeared off having made no contact with yours whatsoever.

It becomes quite apparent that for all the actual impact it has on your existence, the incident is hardly worthy of your consideration or thought, let alone the effect it has on your blood pressure!

In addition, consider the different responses to the situation you might have if you had been aware of the following possible variations on the theme.

Imagine for instance that you had known that:

From this you can see that our normal reactions to what happens in the environment around us are ones of emotional habit, and are based on an incomplete knowledge of the facts. Above all, our reactions are a matter of choice.

To fly into a rage when something happens is one reaction to the event, but it is not your only choice. The driver with good Concentration, Observation and Anticipation/Perception skills will take the proverbial ‘deep breath and count to 10’ routine, consider the possible options, and then choose the most appropriate and positive response.

The driver who has not developed the three mental skills of driving, or has not received any further driver awareness training since their driving test, will spend a lot of time and energy being the ‘victim’ of circumstance and the helpless pawn of his or her negative thinking habit.

Think before you instinctively react; this will raise your awareness, reduce your stress levels and minimise the risk.

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